Craft Drinks Bill

Posted on Dec 1, 2016

Craft Drinks Bill

Folks, we need your help!

Alan Kelly, Labour T.D. has proposed a Bill, which we are calling the Craft Drinks Bill, which will change our current licensing laws and we need as many people as possible to support it. Here’s Alan Kelly in action yesterday at the Dáil.

So how does this affect us?

At the moment we are free to offer tours of our microbrewery. And tourists love it! However after they have heard our story and seen how we do what we do, they always ask can they bring some beer home. Unfortunately, we have to explain to them that due to our current licensing laws, we cannot sell them any beers. Alan Kelly adequately compared the craft drinks tourism to similar markets in Europe.

“For example, can you imagine a situation existing in Italy, France or Spain, where tourists visiting vineyards are prevented from purchasing wine at the end of their tour?”

Currently, the bill has moved on the second stage but we still have a long way to go.
Please help support our ever growing industry, local employment and help promote tourism in your area.

What are we asking you to do?

Well firstly, we would like you to copy and paste the letter below, fill in the areas that are specific to you and send these via email, post, or pigeon if needs be, to your local T.D.s.

Secondly, show your support online. Show us you care and get on Bookface, Twitterland etc. and use the #craftdrinksbill hastag. Share this blog with your friends.

Thirdly, take off your bras and burn them in the streets……..no, too far? Ok, ok, step 1 and 2 will suffice!

Here’s a template, (we’re making it so easy for you) you can read through it if you want to know the ins and outs, but if you could just change the X’s to name, the Y’s to county….you get the idea!

Letter Template

Good afternoon,

My name is XXX and I live at YYYYY.

I am writing to you today about the Craft Drinks Bill being proposed by
Alan Kelly, Labour T.D.

I would like you as my representatives to throw your support behind this
bill, for a number of reasons. Apart from the great boost to the local
economy through increased revenue and tourism opportunities in [YOUR
LOCAL AREA], the craft drinks industry will increase
opportunities across right across the country.

As we all sadly know, the concentration of jobs and industry in Dublin
has lead to fewer opportunities in our beautiful regional and rural
areas of Ireland. At the same time, increasing population in the capital
has led to a housing crisis and unaffordable rents as people migrate to
the city from outside Dublin.

The beauty of the craft beer drinks industry in Ireland is that it is
geographically spread right across the country; by developing industries
like brewing, distilling and cider-making outside of the capital we
will, in the long run, be increasing job opportunities all over Ireland.
The manufacturers themselves are already generating employment (craft
breweries in Ireland employ almost 450 people directly) and there are
knock-on effects to be seen in other industries, such as farming as
demand for raw material increases, and the hospitality and service
industries where these fantastic beverages are making a big splash.

It seems like the craft beverage industry has often been left behind
during initiatives to drive consumers to support Irish goods, perhaps
because the government may be afraid they would be seen to be promoting
irresponsible behaviour. The craft beverage sector is an industry that
targets consumers based on quality, taking the emphasis away from
quantity; as such, supporting our Irish drinks producers promotes a
responsible drinking message.

I hope you will throw your full weight behind this bill and support Alan
Kelly, and our craft drinks pioneers, in his proposal, and remove the
legal anomaly that is stifling the growth of this amazing industry.